As wildfires continue to ravage Southern California, celebrity realtor Jason Oppenheim is calling attention to a shady practice.
The Selling Sunset star and Oppenheim Group boss put Los Angeles landlords on blast after one of his clients was a victim of price-gouging, which Oppenheim noted is illegal during a natural disaster.
“This is something I want to discuss because I think it should be exposed, but we’re having landlords taking advantage of the situation,” he told BBC. “I had a client, we sent him to a house that was asking $13,000 a month. He offered $20,000 a month and he offered to pay six months upfront, and the landlord said, ‘No, I want $23,000 a month.’ There are price gouging laws in California, they’re just being ignored right now, and this isn’t the time to be taking advantage of situations, and it’s also illegal to take advantage of a natural disaster.”
As Oppenheim noted, California prohibits increasing rental prices by greater than 10 percent during a declared state of emergency. Meanwhile, Gov. Gavin Newsom has also issued an executive order to prevent fraud and and price gouging amid the fires.
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Oppenheim previously offered to represent victims displaced by the fire for free through his and brother Brett Oppenheim’s brokerage firm. “If you’ve lost your home in the Los Angeles fires and you need to find a place to rent until your home is rebuilt, all Oppenheim Group agents will represent you for free or credit you back any commission we receive in the transaction,” he announced on Instagram.
Meanwhile, stars like Paris Hilton, Milo Ventimiglia, Adam Brody, Leighton Meester and Billy Crystal have lost their homes in the ongoing wildfires.
Fires have broken out in the Pacific Palisades, Eaton Canyon, Malibu, the Hollywood Hills and other areas around Los Angeles County amid a “life-threatening and destructive” windstorm that picked up Tuesday.
As of Sunday, at least 16 people have died in the Southern California wildfires, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has received 16 missing persons reports related to the fires. Meanwhile, more than 105,000 people have received mandatory evacuation orders, with another 87,000 under evacuation warnings.
Since the fires started, officers have made 29 arrests across the impacted areas, including for burglary, breaking curfew and other violations.
President Joe Biden, who extended his Los Angeles trip on Wednesday to visit first responders and those affected, declared the fires a major disaster and directed the federal government to cover 100% of costs for disaster assistance.
“Over 100,000 people have been ordered to evacuate communities impacted by the Southern California wildfires,” wrote Biden on X. “At least two people have been killed. And many more are injured — including firefighters. It’s devastating. To the residents of Southern California: We are with you.”
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